Coiled pin tag strip



March 29, 1938. E KOHNLE i y 2,112,627.

INVENTOR 34% 4,

Patented Mar. 29, 1938 AUNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE coILED Pm TAG STRIP Frederick Kohnle, Dayton, Ohio, assignor to The Monarch Marking System Company, Dayton, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application September 1, 1936, Serial No. 98,920

3 Claims. (Cl. 40-25) This invention relates to improvements in packis the most feasible manner of packaging, with aging a merchandise price marking tag strip comthe prongs extended perpendicularly from the posed of a plurality of connected tags, each tag face side of the tag, it is necessary to offset or having a wire staple form of fastener secured displace the longitudinal edges of each convolu- 5 thereto marginally at one edge, the fastener protion of the spiral with respect to the next adja- 5 viding a pair of pointed parallel prongs projecting cent convolution in order to compactly bring the from one face side of the tag. The prongs conconvolutions one upon another. Such method, ventionally project perpendicularly from the face however, produces a convex, concave-sided packside of the tag in a most apt position for ready age, requires an increased size of packing carinsertion through the goods` to be ticketed and ton, and necessitates mounting within an' extend- 10 thence are clinched or bent down upon the goods ed width of reel on the marking machine and an for securing the tag.` extended strip slacking length from the reel to Price marking tags in strip assembly are exthe feed track or Way of the machine, due to the tensively used for machine marking. Therefore constant disalignment of the strip with the feed itis preferable to have the prongs located slightly track entrance, together with the objections of l5 inward from an edge of the tag to leave the lonprong entanglement. gitudinal edge of the strip unobstructed, so that By the present method the prongs are folded it can be guided along a track or shoulder to maininwardly from the edge and downwardly upon tain accurate feeding alignment in its advance the underside of the tag without any perceptible through the marking machine for appropriately distortion to the structure of the staple fastener, 0 printing the desired marking data upon each tag from which position the prongs are easily erected consecutively, and to sever the tags one from anas the tag, in the feed of the strip, approaches along a dividing line to individually dispense the the feeding track or guide in the marking matags from the machine. chine, and assume and hold their conventional 'I'he strip, at the division line of the tags, is perpendicular position until clinched in fasten- 25 notched or apertured for cooperation with a feed ing the tags to merchandise. finger of the marking machine to intermittently An object of the invention, therefore, is to advance the strip a distance equal to the aperpackage a tag strip composed of a plurality of tured or notched spacing for consecutively movunit-joined tags, each tag having a prong or ing the tags of the strip beneath printing devices prongs of a metallic fastener extensible from one 30 of the marking machine for imprinting the markface side thereof and folded or turned inwardly ing data thereon and for severing each marked against said face side, the strip coiled with the tag from the strip, to dispense the same individlongitudinal opposite edges thereof respectively ually for either hand or machine application to in alignment or co-planar to provide a flat coil the goods. with the prongs hidden or sheathed between the 35 In machine marking it has been desirable to convolutions thereof. employ tag strips of great length to furnish an Another object of the invention is to package abundant supply of tags, thereby eliminating frean extended strip length of gang connected tags quent reloading, particularly when marking a into a flat coil, with the prongs ofthe metallic large lot of one kind of merchandise with the same fasteners of each tag housed or connected be- 40 marking data, allowing the marking machine to tween the convolutions.

run at its full capacity for long periods without Further features and advantages of the inveninterruption, thereby effecting a material saving tion will be more fully set forth in a descripin time and reduction in marking costs. tion of the accompanying drawing, in which:

The conventional method of supplying the wire Figure 1 is a perspective view of the improved 45 staple fastener type of tags with double sharppackage. pointed prongs is with the prongs projecting Figure 2 is a section on line 2 2, Figure 1. perpendicularly to a face side of the tag, ready Figure 3 is a perspective View of an individual to be pierced through the goods for tag attachtag.

ment, which method however presents obstacles Referring to the drawing, I indicates a tape or 50 in packaging Vlong strips, if folded or reeled, as strip, usually of paper material, composed of a the prongs of one tag readily interlock or enplurality of connected tags 2. In the preferred tangle with those of others, causing interference form the strip, for use in a marking machine, against freedom for feeding to the marking mais divided by divisional notches 3 inwardly or chine. As reeling or spirally winding the strip laterally extending from one longitudinal edge 55 and in relatively equal or uniform spaced parallelism, Athe spacing in the instance illustrated being determinant of the Width measurement of the tag. Each tag has a wire or metallic staple type of fastener 4 permanently secured thereto. 'I'he structure of the fastener is of a conventional staple type, old in the art, favorable to the trade and extensively used for pinning a price-marked tag upon certain classes of merchandise.

The fastener comprises a length of wire bent to provide a cross-bar portion 5, lying or bearing against one or a face side of the tag. From each of the opposite ends of cross-bar portion 5 the wire is bent or shaped in the form of. return bends 6 6 for engagement through the tag, clinched and bearing against the reverse face side of the tag and thence bent at right angles to provide a pair of straight shankV parallel prongs 1 1 having sharp pointed ends. The prongs conventionally extend perpendicularly from one or a reverse face of the tag forl insertion through the goods to be ticketed and are clinched. over upon the goods for securely fastening the tag.

The cross-bar portion 5 of the fastener extends preferably longitudinally parallel with an adjoining edge of the tag or strip, and marginally therefrom with the prongs in line therewith, so that no portionl ofv the fastener forms any obstruction to the straight longitudinal edge of the strip, which, in a. marking machine, engages or bears against a guiding track or shoulder for an accurate strip feeding alignment to insure printing the marking data upon the tag Within the space allotted therefor.

The staple fasteners for the tags of the strip are in longitudinal alignment, each located' between a pairy of notches in the strip, facilitating in lsevering`the tags one from another and from the strip. The notches, in their particular arrangement, provide shoulders for cooperation with the feeding devices of the marking machine for feeding or advancing the strip in step degrees. TheseA features and purposes are Well known and recognized in the art and constitute a standard from which it is not desirable to deviate. f

*The prevailing practice has been to supply pack tag strips of the foregoing described character in comparatively short straight strip lengths, each therefore furnishing only a limited supply of tags which are quickly exhausted in a rapidly operating marking machine, requiring under heavy usage almost constant reloading of the machine, which, to some degree, slows down operation.

To package a considerable length of tag strip it is'spirally wound about a given diameter coil, from which it is slipped, giving the coil a central opening for engagement over a reel of a marking machine for unreelingvthe strip. The prongs of the staple are folded or turned inwardly against the underside of the tags to lie between the convolutions of the coil,l sheathing or housing the same .and adapting the strip to be compactly coiled into a flat-sided coil. The free ends ofthe strip respectively are adhesively taped or stickersealed to relative adjacent convolutions to preventA unravelling.

The structure of the head end of the fastener, for connecting it to the tag, and the flexibility of the paper board tag permit the prongs to be .tion, or exposed within the central opening of the coil, the package can be safely handled by an operatorwithout injury to the hands by being .pricked with the sharp points of the prong. 'Ihe straight or flat sides ofthe coil allow the strip to -be Vconned upon a reel against lateral displacement, and unreeled in constant alignment with the feed track or loading entrance of the marking machine. VAs the strip is unreeled, the prongs can be easily erected to a perpendicular position with the advance of the strip by engaging the prongs against a stationary guide andY thereafterY retain the erected or perpendicular position the same as if they had never been disturbed for strip coiling.

In a coil thelstrip can be flat packaged to provide asupply of vehundred (v500) or more tags, as compared to the straight strip method in which each strip contains twelve or eighteen tags'. The coil method also offers advantages in manufacture and packing and practically eliminates any liability Vto personal injury from the prongs pricking the hands in handling, and this extends bothin the manufacture and in use.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1; A coiledftag strip composed of a plurality of connected tags, each tag having a pin secured thereto, providing one or more pointed prongs for projection perpendicular from one face side thereof, marginally from one longitudinal edge ofthe strip,.said tag strip being wound spirally with the prong or prongs of the pins turned inwardly to a planar position with the tag facesides, to sheath the same between theconvolutions of the coil, and with the convolutionsV lying in a common planeto'form a compactly'wound flat-sided coil.

2. A'co'iled `tag strip'composed of a plurality of connected tags, each'tag having a pinv secured thereto, providing one Yor more pointed prongs for projection perpendicular'from one face side thereof, marginally from one'longitudinal edge of the strip, said tag strip being wound spirally with the prong or prongs of the pins turned 'inwardly to a. planar position with the tag face sides to sheath the same between the convolutions of the coil with the convolutions lying in a common 'I planeA to form a compactlywound flat-sided coil, and the free end of the strip being taped to a relative adjoining convolution to prevent unravelling.

3. A coiled tag strip composed of a plurality of 1 F'REDERICK KOHNLE. 

